Typhoon A2A kill
Joined: Mar 2005
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From: The Empire
What does one say? The thread is littered with strong opinions about the validity/cost of the “kill”. In honest terms, let’s not forget that the soul purpose of military aviation is to enable the success of our ground forces, if the drone in question was a threat to said ground forces - bravo!
Joined: May 2002
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From: Scotland
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 1,180
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From: Here and there.
BZ to all involved.
Fed up of the "why waste all that money on destroying a toy drone" messages all across facebook so thought I'd pop on here for some sense.
Sadly seems there are muppets on here too. Surprised no one suggested flying alongside and tipping the wing like the Spitfires did to Doodlebugs.
To put it into perspective, i reckon the cost was around 2 minutes worth of the UK annual defence budget. Excellent value if it saved one injury on the ground, let alone someones life out there. If you think otherwise then you need to give your head a wobble.
As I say well done to all involved. You did your job, and you did it well.
Fed up of the "why waste all that money on destroying a toy drone" messages all across facebook so thought I'd pop on here for some sense.
Sadly seems there are muppets on here too. Surprised no one suggested flying alongside and tipping the wing like the Spitfires did to Doodlebugs.
To put it into perspective, i reckon the cost was around 2 minutes worth of the UK annual defence budget. Excellent value if it saved one injury on the ground, let alone someones life out there. If you think otherwise then you need to give your head a wobble.
As I say well done to all involved. You did your job, and you did it well.
Last edited by SATCOS WHIPPING BOY; 17th December 2021 at 13:55.
Joined: May 1999
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From: Quite near 'An aerodrome somewhere in England'
SATCO's, if you have the patience to trawl through the puerile drivel on this thread, you will see that the 'wing-tipping' comment was made in post #33.....
Joined: Aug 2000
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From: Here and there.
Cheers BEagle, I see it now. The post didn't register and reading it now I take it as sarcasm rather than a suggestion.
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From: Richard Burtonville, South Wales.
CG
Below the Glidepath - not correcting
Joined: Jun 2005
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From: U.S.A.
It's an impressive technical achievement, but the huge cost/effort imbalance is important and speaks to the sustainability and eventual outcome. In Afghan, one illiterate bloke in sandals could tie-up huge amounts of resources and paralyse entire columns of vehicles with the threat of an IED that might not even be real or effective. We saw heroic efforts from specialist teams helicoptered in to spend half a day to clear a few yards of road, it became obvious to anyone who saw this that it was not sustainable, let alone win-able. A solution is needed to large numbers of cheap, low tech drones, and I don't think it's a Typhoon firing an ASRAAM at every one.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Joined: Jul 2000
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From: Peripatetic
It’s coming, with lasers, but about 10 years down line for a FJ system.
https://www.aero-mag.com/usaf-laser-weapons-04082021
And, possibly, countermeasures….
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...-of-nellis-afb
https://www.aero-mag.com/usaf-laser-weapons-04082021
And, possibly, countermeasures….
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...-of-nellis-afb
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,540
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From: UK
If people would only google Iranian Drones before commenting they would see that some of their drones are sizeable, probably the same length as a Spitfire, and very capable of wreaking death and destruction.
If you think the reports are talking about a drone you can buy at your local model shop then you need to update your knowledge.
If you think the reports are talking about a drone you can buy at your local model shop then you need to update your knowledge.
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 3,311
Likes: 365
From: uk
It’s coming, with lasers, but about 10 years down line for a FJ system.
https://www.aero-mag.com/usaf-laser-weapons-04082021
And, possibly, countermeasures….
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...-of-nellis-afb
https://www.aero-mag.com/usaf-laser-weapons-04082021
And, possibly, countermeasures….
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...-of-nellis-afb
I wonder if anyone in MoD regrets shutting down our research and development about 15 or so years ago. Or even knows of it. Some of it recommenced recently, but the original scientists were gone, some now employed by near neighbours applying the science in other fields. Not unlike laser wire strike avoidance kit from mid-80s. Same superb people, but others countries benefit.
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From: Ferrara
My post #33 about wing tipping was making the point that the RAF doesn't have low end capabilities - only high end so that's what you have to use. Any other discussion is just idiotic.
and thinking about it wing tipping in a (modern) Typhoon would probably cost more in investigation/paperwork/repairs to the aircraft than to the cost of a missile
and thinking about it wing tipping in a (modern) Typhoon would probably cost more in investigation/paperwork/repairs to the aircraft than to the cost of a missile
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From: Herefordshire
easyJet Moderator
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From: Schloss Neuschwanstein
Apologies for earlier error - doing too many things at once! I think you will find RAF pilots shot down Argentinian aircraft in the Falklands War - they were flying the SHAR as the RN had insufficient pilots to crew them. Interesting story here about one of them, Flt Lt David Morgan, who joined the Navy but left to join the RAF so he could fly fast jets. Eventually, after being on the RAF Harrier GR3, he was sent to the RN to fly the SHAR. He ended up shooting down 2 jets and a helicopter, plus destroying one helicopter on the ground. Here is a good Wikipedia article on the subject - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_...l_Navy_officer
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From: The Winchester
Apologies for earlier error - doing too many things at once! I think you will find RAF pilots shot down Argentinian aircraft in the Falklands War - they were flying the SHAR as the RN had insufficient pilots to crew them. Interesting story here about one of them, Flt Lt David Morgan, who joined the Navy but left to join the RAF so he could fly fast jets. Eventually, after being on the RAF Harrier GR3, he was sent to the RN to fly the SHAR. He ended up shooting down 2 jets and a helicopter, plus destroying one helicopter on the ground. Here is a good Wikipedia article on the subject - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_...l_Navy_officer
Last edited by wiggy; 18th December 2021 at 11:15.
easyJet Moderator
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From: Schloss Neuschwanstein
If you are on here - you are my personal hero and one of the reasons I joined the RAF in 1983. Our country owes you much. What you and your colleagues did was incredibly impressive and will likely never be repeated. I joined as a Nav and 8 years later found myself hurtling down a runway in the back of a Tornado GR1, heading off to Iraq from Saudi Arabia and mulling over the oddities of life that got me there! The amazing efforts of Harrier/Sea Harrier pilots a few years earlier was a great inspiration. They had none of the equipment we had and operated off a tiny ship in the middle of a very inhospitable South Atlantic. Now that is quality!
Joined: Sep 2008
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From: Dark Side of West Wales
Coming back to wing tipping, didn't Mogs take out an Argi helicopter in the Falklands without firing a shot. Perhaps he has a view on such tactics with drones and I am most certainly not being facetious!
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From: 350/3 Compton
I would have thought that the Israeli computer-controlled small arms system might have merit.
Mog